Young immigrants may have taken the jobs that young Britons might have had and so forcing native employment levels up
Posted on 12/18/2007 1:19:48 AM PST by Stoat
More than 100,000 young Britons may have been pushed into unemployment by the recent waves of economic immigrants from Eastern Europe, according to a new report by a leading economic thinktank.
Since 1997, 1.5 million foreign workers have entered the British workplace, with many of these arriving from Eastern Europe in just the past three years, according to a report by the influential economic analysts, the Ernst & Young ITEM Club.
During the same three years, the number of unemployed British 18 to 24 year olds has increased by 100,000.
Scroll down for more...
Young immigrants may have taken the jobs that young Britons might have had and so forcing native employment levels up
The report says: "There is some evidence that the growth of immigrant employment seen in the last few years may have come at the expense of the domestic workforce.
"Given the age and skill profile of many of the new immigrants, it is possible that 'native' youngsters may have been losing out in the battle for entry-level jobs."
However the report also claims that Britain's growth would be badly dented if the flow of migrants was stopped.
About 1.5million workers from overseas have arrived over the past decade and are taking most new jobs at cut-price rates, the Ernst & Young Item Club has found.
It said the country would have suffered slower growth, higher inflation and higher interest rates but for the new arrivals.
The study found said many immigrants had taken lower-skilled jobs at wages that were only 61 per cent of the UK average.
It also predicted gross domestic product would grow by 3 per cent a year over the next decade.
I suppose then that it all comes down to what sort of country you want.....
It appears that a decision has been made, and I believe that I can hear Admiral Lord Nelson spinning in his grave.
Such a similar future awaits us here in the USA if we fail to control our borders and if we allow Socialists to have their way, although many will argue that we are already past the pont of no return.
Interesting that Britain can make this connection, but GWB cannot.
To me, this isn’t so much an issue of socialism, but of capitalism. It’s no more than supply and demand, only rather than goods, the commodity is labor. What we are living through is a gradual leveling of labor costs across the world. It’s going to happen, the only question is at what speed.
...doing the jobs Ameri.....Brits won’t do
The difference is that the immigrants also latch on to every “free” government program they can get their hands on, as witness the fact that practically every Muslim terrorist arrested in Britain was living in government housing and receiving their generous dole.
Taxpayers are paying the rent and living expenses of the new arrivals. That’s how employers get away with paying wages 61% less to immigrants. Employers of immigrants ought to pay an “Immigrant Employee Surcharge” to reimburse what the taxpayer is paying for their cheap labor.
The left, including Bush, use the same arguments here to disenfranchise the people who built the country.
The same thing happens in the US, but when the stats are published, they say "x% of the population is only making 61% of the average wage", completely disregarding the housing, food, medical and heating assistance that, if it were added to their income, would put them closer to, if not over, the average wage.
"Wages" was only a good indication when "everyone" paid for "everything" they used or consumed. With all the present government assistance programs, "wages" alone should be dumped for "Total Wages Earned & Assistance Provided" number.
This is EXACTLY why our 2008 elections are CRITICAL and ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION and EFFECTIVE BORDER SECURITY are key!!!
DUNCAN HUNTER ‘08
must be those darn irish imm a grints.
no??
but....i have a stereotype to uphold.
Not, by and large, the East European immigrants this article is talking about, who have a reputation for working hard and more than earning their keep. Conversely, many of the British Muslim terrorists were not immigrants at all (at least not first generation).
"The elites are transnationalists. They have their culture. Private jets, trophy wives, tax dodging. The specifics of local culture means less than nothing, they actually despise it, everywhere. To them people are commodities, a ‘labor force’, nothing different than a pile of coal"
I think that's exactly right. But don't underestimate the desperation of these "elites" to divest themselves of their deep seated guilt - Guilt for what their ancestors did, guilt for their own success, and most of all guilt for belonging to an ethnicity/culture that has been so extroidinarily successful.
They are on a quest to punish others of their own ethnicity and culture to prove to themselves and others that they have "risen above" the old order and have been reborn, perfectly suited to assume the mantle of leadership in the coming perfect future, which they will naturally control due to their inherent superior enlightened nature. For them that's just a given.
They are the most puerile narcissists on the planet, and getting rid of them as self-appointed overlords will not be easy in any country.
You're right, it's largely a labour market issue. In the medium term, contrary to the general assumption, it's the skilled rather than the unskilled labour market in Britain which will be most affected. Take, for example, the position of almost any British plumbing contractor at the moment. Does he take on an unskilled teenage apprentice, and train him up for four or five years before he's qualified to work unsupervised and the employer begins to get a return on his investment? Or does he buy "off the shelf", and at far lower cost, a highly skilled, fully qualified and highly motivated Polish plumber? Extrapolate this to all skilled trades over a decade or so, and it's not hard to see the pattern which would emerge.
I would not be surprised if many of the “Britons” referred to here are the children of immigrants who just want to live on the dole and talk jihad with their buddies at the mosque.
There’s those jobs that the Brits just won’t do.
I’ve seen it up close and personal. I used to manage a small airport in Nashville on the weekends when we would get a lot of private jet traffic. The owners and their wives and guests would treat my linemen like crap especially the foreigners that flew in. I once had a woman throw her fur coat at me without saying a word like I was a coat rack. Of course to her I probably looked like a coat rack. I was on the verge of murder that day.
One of the most rude people that flew in was Jimmy Buffett and his entourage. Rude.
Honestly, while it will be painful for the short term, in the long term, this is a good thing, helping to squeeze inefficiencies out of the labor market. It just sucks for the guys stuck in the meantime. Adapt or die, creative destruction, in other words, capitalism at work.
I think the far better solution would be to do away with the government programs. Problem is, “there takin our jerbs!” is a better rallying cry than “no to government entitlements”. It’s unfortunate, but it’s the truth. I don’t really blame them, hell, if I found out some moron was giving away 3x my salary per person in some other country, I’d probably move there too.
Great Britain was warned years ago by Enoch Powell and all called him a nutter and a bigot. But, now, the USA and Britain are slipping toward a Third World status because of PC phoney compassion for people who break laws and will not assimilate. And Pelosi just wiped out a part of legislation on making English our lingo in the workplace, churches et al. Ah, the lefty Dems and their hatred for America!!
Hardly an apt description of the hard-working, legal East European immigrants which this article is about...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.